Only a matter of license
by Radiklement
Summary: Vaan has to go out with Penelo to get the chance to drive Balthier's airship. But for the first date to take place, Penelo need licenses points to have the right to wear what she wants. Where to get LP? In the Pharos, naturally... Vaan/Penelo
1. Only a matter of license

This story is my first ffxii fic. But don't worry, it's really not my first fic. It must be the number 30, to be exact, but, I'm not sure. I deleted some of my stories lately. Oh, before I let you read, please, I wanna tell you that I'm French, so my English may lack a bit of… well, professionalism, I would say. If you find any mistake, I'm sure you'll find some of them, I'm sorry, utterly sorry, but don't mind them and keep reading knowing that they were really not done on purpose. Well, like any mistake. I'm so stupid when I get to it…

Well, this fic may be a one shot, or maybe not, so, just read, have fun and review if you have the will to. I know just how hard it is to review, I'll take any criticism, constructive or not. Just keep in mind, this fic revolves around a Vaan x Penelo couple, so if you don't love them, don't blame me, blame yourself for keep on reading it.

Well then, have fun reading!

It's only a matter of license

Everything had only begun with a stupid bet. At first, Vaan only wished to get the chance to fly in Balthier's airship a little while. But the said pilot didn't rent his engine to the first newcomer. So the air pirate decided to give his chance to the young man. Only if…

"If you can date your friend Penelo for a whole month, I shall believe that you're responsible enough so that I lend you my ship."

"But… you're talking nonsense! How does the fact that I would be going out with Penelo could prove you I'm responsible?"

Vaan would have chosen to fight an invincible monster more than to go out with his childhood friend. Because he understood quite well what the pilot was implying and he wasn't feeling ready at all to confront that side of adulthood. And as for Penelo… She thought of him as a brother.

"She'll never want to go out with me!"

"You're really that stupid, are ya? I'll leave you two choices, kid; in the first case, you'll take the bet and get through it, in the second case, you forgot my ship for the next ten years. I really don't have time to play around with kids like you. I got things to attend to, unlike…"

"Okay, okay, I'll do it, I'll date Penelo, you just wait and see!" replied Vaan before to get up and leave Balthier and Fran with the bill.

He didn't know at that time just how much this task was going to be hard. First, there was the uneasiness of the rookie. How do we invite a girl out? Then came guilt… How would Penelo react when she know he was going out with her only to get a chance to pilot Balthier's ship? Let's be serious, Vaan was a man, and men are not considerate enough to care about such trivial facts. He was nervous for more major questions. Was he supposed to hold her hand? To kiss her? To give her something? He didn't have that much money… Yes, our dear Vaan had a practical mind.

I will spare you every internal conflict that torn Vaan and threatened at the same time his sanity and his budget. After his own reflection over what Penelo really meant to him, something sounding quite like that: She's almost my sister, it's like incest, I'm a criminal! What if she laughs at me? I'm so useless… Be a man Vaan! What if I loved her for real? I'm too young to die!

After all that terrible thinking, he decided to give it his all. It was a win or lose situation. All left to do was to try his best.

He polished the armor plates on his pants until they shine like diamonds. He trained himself for two whole days to firm up his muscles. He put forward his monthly shower (do you know how hard it could be to get clean water in Rabanastre during summer when the waterway is broken?) and finally, he judged that every thing on his list of advices from Basch was checked.

No task left to separate him from the fateful demand. All left to do was now to obey the greatest law of love according to Reks, the late brother of our poor Vaan, to be himself. "How am I going to get through this?"

Finally, Vaan made it all like a pro. He stammered and stuttered, was unable to bear his young friend's gaze more than two seconds until he was able to tell out the truth, that he emphasized with one poor flower stolen to a wolf in the Westersand.

The outcome was immediate. Penelo found him adorable, began to stammer and stutter too, before to take the scarlet flower and catch Vaan's hand with a smile. From then on, the young thief didn't have to worry about anything, as his new girlfriend took care of every detail of their present and future lives. He had to take care of a load of deliveries in her place, helped her cooking for the other orphans and during quite a while, it seemed as nothing had change between them.

And that meant that he wasn't getting anywhere near Balthier's airship's control's board. He wrote a very short letter to Basch to ask him for more advice, after having reflected over this problem for three long days, all in vain. But he wanted to fly in that ship, at least one more time. Archadia's post was going smoothly and he soon received his answer and solution. He had to be serious, and it was his task to do the first move.

"What kind of move is he talking about? This doesn't look like Basch's writing at all, someone has intercepted my letter or what? , growled Vaan. First move, first move, haven't I've been doing enough already, I've been running everywhere for nothing!"

Two days of heat wave passed by, during which the young man asked himself if his brain was not beginning to melt. He was clan Centurion's best hunter; he had saved his country and almost all Ivalice. Why going out with Penelo would scare him that much? Vaan took his courage with his both hands, after having lightened two soldiers' wallets and asked Penelo out, for a real date of lovers. The restaurant, a visit in a temple and a walk in Rabanastre's streets, until they reach the fountain in the central plaza. The poor Vaan would have loved it if cinemas existed… His life would have been simpler.

Penelo was surprised but enthusiastic and she accepted so quickly that the date was settled in no time. They would spend tomorrow night together. She blushed at the thought and her shyness touched Vaan. All of a sudden, the littlest bit of attention he gave his friend created incomparable reactions. Before, a smile or a fool laugh would have only resulted in a knowing or reproachful gaze. Now, she was acting different with him. She didn't dare anymore to push him around and avoided every contact. He wasn't her brother anymore. She looked at him as a woman looked at a man. He was terrified by it and troubled. That agitation created a pleasant tension in his stomach. And Vaan's gaze had changed too.

Maybe he was hung up, but he wasn't completely innocent either.

At last, the first step, the invitation was passed, and greatly, he hadn't stuttered as much this time, so Vaan forgot the bet and the rendezvous to go through his day quietly. In the end of the afternoon, as decided, he went at Penelo's place to take her out. But she wasn't ready. He decided to wait that she finished preparing herself. After an hour or so, an hour he spent fighting with Migelo over his freshly new relationship with Penelo, the young man didn't gave it a damn anymore. He smashed in Penelo's room to know what was taking her so long.

The room was all upside down and remembered him a moment of the poor district of Archadia. Then, he noticed his girlfriend's hair which was undone and untidy, not to mention her tight clothes. She was wearing a top looking just like her bra and a strange skirt that she must have borrowed from a Viera. At least, Vaan hoped so.

"What is taking you so damn long? You're not dressed already?"

"Vaan! It's horrible; I can't put on anything decent!"

"What?"

He almost said that her clothes looked nice to him, but he was bright enough to keep it shut.

"I don't have the right to wear the accessories I want! Nor this bracelets, nor this corset! They've cost me so much and I can't even wear them!"

"And… why?"

Vaan had a lot of difficulty to look at Penelo in the eyes and even more to follow what she was saying.

"I don't have the licenses for them. The other day, an agent forced a woman to undress herself in the middle of the street because she didn't have the licenses for her clothes!"

She put on a vest and caught Vaan by the arm to drag him out. His short-circuited brain caught on with unease.

"Where are we going?" he managed to ask.

"Let's hurry, if we're quick enough, maybe we will kill enough monsters so that I get my licenses."

"But I don't care about what you're wearing!"

They were already out of Rabanastre when the young girl changed her mind and dragged her boyfriend back to a red crystal. She had made her mind and she wasn't going out with him without the accessories she had planned to wear!

"At the pharos, it will be a greater challenge, don't you think? Like this, it won't be boring."

"Are you insane, I don't even have my equipment with me!"

Vaan's brain was back, but it was too late.

"We'll just have to take some along the way! And anyway, weren't you the one saying just yesterday you liked to fight barehanded, heh?"

Really, this airship was going to cost him. May Balthier leave him the chance to pilot for at lest a year. Because Vaan was going to live one more month of this hell. And going out chasing some monsters in the Pharos basements… "For accessories!" Vaan thought. He didn't know that Penelo knew about the bet because of Fran. And that he didn't have the licenses for wearing pants covered by iron plates. Maybe it was best to quit Rabanastre before a guard realized it.

-the e.n.d.-

Well, I said the end, but I'm still not sure. It would be fun to see how Penelo will keep on dating Vaan, driving him insane and making him fall in love with her as she's doing her best to avoid the bet to get done. Who will win, Vaan and his love for airship, or Penelo and her love for Vaan? Or will Vaan fall in love before he even knows it? Well, maybe we'll see, if you ask me for more.

So… review!


	2. Side effects

Hi there everybody! So I received a few reviews and I really liked to write the first part of this story, so I decided that I would pursue it, even if I have to much school, work and studies to attend to. Be merciful, I said earlier I didn't really liked Penelo and Vaan, but I found myself making this all fluffy and sweet. I believe Vaan's one of square enix characters with the more potential for improvement, since he's really vague in the games they've made over him. I was playing the other day and I remembered that time when we arrive in Bahamuth, right before fighting with Vayne. Suddenly, the team looks all friendly and yeah-we're-a-team! While they seemed like total strangers the whole game. Well, I guess that after 120 hours of hardcore training with me as the game master, there's no choice but get a bit friendlier with your teammate… I guess. Anyway, so this is still a romance/humor fic, it revolves around Vaan and Penelo and I think that I really put the right rating in this. Why? Oh, just guess.

Well then, shall we begin? Remember Penelo wanted to go to the Pharos? How will our two "lovebirds" deal with the fight, the monster and the goal of getting enough licenses points for Penelo to be able to wear what she want on their –first- date? Let us find out!

Only a matter of license –Chapter 2 – Side effects

"Hey Penelo, did you ever wonder why…? Penelo? Hey?"

Vaan was surprised when, after a turn in a corridor of the pharos, he found himself alone. A moment ago, his "girlfriend" was there and then, she was no more… Of course, their kill chain was nearing the four hundred monsters and she had asked to take a break more than one time, but he was determined to end this task as quickly as possible. And, unfortunately, Vaan was a battle's freak. He had now collected enough weapons and accessories to complete his equipment and was having quite much fun. Penelo was here only for license points and even with four hundred monsters down, she was not nearing the completion of the three licenses she wanted to clear.

"Hey, Penelo? You're hiding or what?"

If she was dead, he would have realized it, wouldn't he? After all, he was their party leader this time. But Vaan wasn't good at strategies, he was more of an all brawl no brain fighter and he was a bit oblivious of what happened with his party. He tried to throw a phoenix down, but nothing happened. She was still alive, unless she was too far for him to raise her back to life… If only he had been more careful about her, such thing wouldn't happen! But then again, if he did concentrate too much over Penelo, his eyes would end up scanning her up and down till shame overcome his own lust and he didn't want her to know how lustful he could be. She still thought he was an innocent fool and he kind of preferred things to stay that way. Even if he was a full grown man on almost every level, he was scared to ever get to show it on this one…

Getting back on his track, he made his way back over the path they had walked on until he realized Penelo's absence. With every second, his heart was beating faster and he felt more and more uneasy. Was she caught in a trap that made her froze, or turn to stone? What if she met a monster which cast instant death over her while he was too preoccupied with his kill chains? Anything could happen. And then he remembered that elemental which have come after them for a while.

She wouldn't dare to fight an element monster alone, would she?, he asked himself.

"Penelo?"

A roar responded angrily and he stepped back, his lance held before him as a thin shield. A sword fell over him, the steel meeting the steel with a harsh sound. In fact, the sword didn't literally fell; it was kind of thrown at him with fierce strength. And the owner of that sword was none other then...

"Penelo?"

"Well, gotcha now, monster! Eeeyaah!"

Vaan found out at that moment that his friend was berserk and confused at the same time!

"Oh man, there're malboros here too?"

He tried to reach out for a remedy, before to be thrown against the wall by the young girl's attack. His head hit the silver bricks and he dazed off for one second or two. Then, he snapped out of it, to see Penelo making a dash for it, her sword held horizontally, aimed for his almost naked chest. He dived to the floor, avoiding the fatal hit, frantically searching for the spell or the remedy that would save him from being killed by the crazed woman.

"I never miss with the masamune, especially with my genji gloves, here, take this!", she replied, attacking once more, her katana flying to his face.

"Penelo, please, you can't really…"

Her face was red and her eyes gleaming with confusion, but she was dead serious and no small talk was about to stop her.

"Penelo, it's me, it's…"

Vaan felt the sword plunging into his flesh, ripping off some of his hair before to run deep in his right shoulder. The pain felt incredibly strong and he couldn't hold back a cry of pain while the blood came out, streaming from his wound. He felt his conscious trying to escape from him and fight against the numbness filling him. Clenching his teeth, he finally activated the right spell.

"Esuna," he whispered.

Light fade while his eyes closed themselves, just before he loose consciousness. He was a goner, that was for sure. So much for wanting to ride that stupid airship. Well, as a matter of fact, he was more scared than angry about the airship, but still, as he regained consciousness, just a moment later, he was quite furious against himself. If he hadn't taken this stupid bet, he would be relaxing in the streets of Rabanastre instead of being stabbed to death by his best friend and almost girlfriend.

When Vaan's mind came back to reality and that he met Penelo's face watching expectantly over him, he yelled and backed away in fear, the ghost of his pain still lingering in his chest. His friend's features were thorn by guilt and sorrow and she seemed on the verge of tears. There was no monster anywhere near and the floor was cold under Vaan's hands. His heart was beating fast and he realized that the pain was only in his memory now and that the blood on his chest was drying.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry Vaan, I was… I can't believe I did this, I should have brought a ribbon or something, you almost died," she blurted out, looking down.

She was kneeling before him, gazing at her bloodstained hands. Something like that happened before in their group, while they were six fighters, but it was between Basch and Balthier and Basch never get to lend a hit. Alone versus Penelo, Vaan had to think and to act at the same time, something he wasn't too good at.

"You shouldn't apologize, it could've been me. Penelo, please, I…"

"I scared you!"

"No, it's just…"

"I'm awful, and so selfish. I shouldn't have taken you here. You didn't have to go through that."

"Hey, it was me who wanted to go out on a date…"

"Precisely!"

"Penelo, you've fixed me up. And even if I died, you could have raise me back and…"

"No! If we wait for too long, you could not be coming back. I nearly killed you!"

Vaan's heart was still racing in his chest at the thought. But his eyes had changed and Penelo's crisis opened his vision a bit more. She loved him more than what he thought she did. And he was scared now, that everything that ever been between them could be lost if he made a single mistake.

"You really scared me back there, but… I know you'll never hurt me on purpose. You're my friend."

Slowly Vaan got on his knees and got nearer to Penelo until he could grab her hands in his. She upped her head and their eyes met. His grip tightened around her small fists and the tension her fingers loosen up a bit.

"Vaan…"

"Forget about what happened Penelo, it's all in the past."

She seemed lost in his gaze and before he knew it, she moved her head toward him. Her face looked strange, and Vaan felt awkward. She wasn't going to kiss him, was she? Penelo's face went far past his as she hugged him tightly. Vaan was helpless as to what to do to respond to her gesture.

"I'm so glad you're okay."

"Well… I guess it's enough for today, don't you agree?"

"But, … what about our date?" She replied, jerking away to look at him straight in the eyes.

"I… It's been something like five hours that we've spent fighting monsters here and… I don't see how we can get you anymore license point without being starved to death."

"Ah, so you're hungry? I'll cook you something!"

"Wha…? But Penelo, there's nothing but monsters here."

"Precisely Vaan! You're so dumb sometimes. Get me some woods, I'll catch a monster, a behemoth or something…"

"But…"

As always, Penelo was running him around, even after her crisis over how badly she felt and how guilty she was. Vaan was desperately trying to focus on how he could get them both to look like a real couple so that he could get his hands on Balthier's ship. When he came back to his "girlfriend", she was ripping off the flesh of a cockatrice from its skin and bones to cool only the fresh and bloody meat into a fine meal.

"Alright, so uh… When did you get use to arrange a monster like that, already?," he asked.

"Fran taught both Ashe and me during our travel together. Basch gave me a trick or two about it, but I'd done it before since I was cooking many times for the orphans, remember?"

"Oh yeah!"

I can't seem to remember seeing her acting so rash. Is that her idea of a date?, he asked himself mentally.

"I know, it's not like one fancy restaurant, but my tastes are still too low for that kind of luxurious places. You know, there's nothing like a meal made by someone that loves you."

Vaan froze at that statement and find himself gazing at her with unease, a painful guilty felling storming in his stomach. Did he love her or was he using her only to reach some goal of his own? He knew he loved her since they were kids, but it was not the kind of love she was referring to. He was scared not to meet her expectations. He was afraid that she may be awaiting for far more than what he asked her out for. All he wanted out from this was to get the chance to fly. And not to hurt his best friend in the process.

Penelo was careful not to look at him, not to let their eyes met, waiting for the effect of her words. And the guilt was building up inside Vaan as he tried to look at her without desire, without have his gaze moving away from her face. He felt bad for having new kinds of thoughts in his head. Was this right? Was this love? What was he supposed to say?

"…"

He sat next to her, thinking deeply –and for Vaan, it was even more painful than the guilt he previously felt-.

"Where are you going with this kind of talk? Just where do you want us to go?"

"I could ask you the same think. You asked me out, but where do you want it to go exactly?"

Things looked bad and Penelo seemed angry. Vaan acted before to think and cast fire on the cockatrice she was ripping in pieces.

"Aahhh! What have you done?"

"What about what I've done, it's just…!"

Penelo removed her burning hand from the corpse before to cast water over the small fire and to turn back to Vaan, tears in the corner of her eyes, her eyebrows furrowed with angriness.

"You burned it on purpose!" She accused him.

"No, I…"

"Don't try to tell that you think it was still alive, cause it was damn clear that it was dead!"

"Your question made me nervous, and I just react…"

"Oww, now my hand's all burned. Look, it's almost black."

Tears spilled down her cheeks and Vaan realized that they were both covered in bruises. Her hair was a mess and fell far over her shoulder. Her face was turning red from the pain under the filth covering it.

"I'm sorry Penelo, I never intended to… Oh, give me your hand, I'll fix it."

"Okay," she whispered, crying softly now.

He casted an esuna and a cure spell until the burn was all gone, but when his friend's skin got smooth again, he didn't let go her hand. He stroke the spot that was wounded a moment ago.

"Vaan?" she asked, unsure.

"It's strange that I've always like to hold your hands but no one else. It always felt so familiar and warm. One of the only ways I could feel home."

That much was true. For once, the airship was gone from Vaan's mind.

"I don't know where I'm going, but I want you to be with me."

"I feel the same way," she replied.

For the first time since he'd lost her in the Pharos, she was able to smile at him and her face seemed to shine.

"With us growing, we were going our separate way and I was scared that you would just disappear from my life," she admitted.

"I would never do that."

"I should've known."

"What d'ya say we head back home now?" he whispered.

"GROAR!"

They turned away from each other to look at the monster which was glaring at them threateningly.

"That doesn't look too good."

"Vaan, I've never seen anything like that before. It look like a rare mark. We could get a trophy out of this! And licenses points."

_Si__nce when is she obsessed in lp? _Vaan asked himself.

Penelo was already charging.

"Oh man, I hope her corset and accessories are really worth it all," he hissed before to get his weapon ready.

To be continued

Well then, that's it for chapter two. It seems Vaan going to have some hard times. And sorry about the blood earlier, but the picture in my mind of a berserk Penelo trying to stab Vaan to death with the masamune was just too much. Then, I don't where all the fluffy stuff come from, but still, I tried to put in some humorous things. Hope you had a good time reading and criticisms always welcome for my improvements.

So, do you want another chapter where you'll know if Vaan has the license for his pants, once they get back at Rabanastre?

Please review…

Radiklement


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